Former IGN writer found dead in murder/suicide

ManaByte

I knew Jason personally, and was his roommate back in 1998. He used to post over on NeoGAF as deamentia. I haven't seen him on AIM in a long time, and found out that he is responsible for a murder/suicide:

http://www.edge-online.com/news/games-journalist-suspected-murder-suicide

A former journalist for IGN, Ziff-Davis and Ultra Game Players has shot himself and his wife in an apparent murder-suicide.

Jason Montes, 33, of Sacramento was found dead by police at the home of his estranged wife in Concord, California on Sunday, January 11. His wife Serena Montes, 25, was fatally wounded at the location. According to police, Montes had called a friend to say he had shot his wife and planned to kill himself. The gun belonged to his father.

Montes, a science fiction and video game devotee, joined Ultra Game Players then published by Imagine Media, in the mid-1990s. According to a resume posted on Facebook, he went on to work for IGN, The Official PlayStation Magazine at Ziff and Prima among others. More recently, he worked in marketing for Hudsonsoft, before pursuing a career in web design and animation.

Serena Montes, a pastry chef, met Montes online and were wed in 2007. However, the two parted last year. Montes had recently filed for bankruptcy protection.

MundaneSoul

Good Lord.

Professor Snugglesworth

Yeah, just saw it. It's pretty messed up.

But I'm curious why he did this. I'd hate to think the lifestyle of a gaming journalist would be so stressful.

Guibs

Wow. This is horrible. You really need to be desperate when you go and kill your loved ones (although it seems they were not togheter anymore according to the article) and yourself.

As for why, well he filled for bankruptcy so I figured the pression of trying to find work in a business that doesn't have lots of opportunity was hard. I always told myself, if things goes bad enough that I can't even find work remotely close to my frield of work, I'll got turn burgers at McDonnald if needs be, so we can survive. You see, when you have a family counting on you, you do what is necessary.

Forar

Always a shame when someones life takes this turn, doubly so when they decide to kill another person on their way out. I feel bad for him and his family over what he chose to do, but I feel worse for his wife and her family.

greeble

Professor Snugglesworth wrote: »

Yeah, just saw it. It's pretty messed up.

But I'm curious why he did this. I'd hate to think the lifestyle of a gaming journalist would be so stressful.

Bankruptcy and divorce sound pretty stressful to me.

Professor Snugglesworth

Well, I meant that I hoped it wasn't because he got so passionate about his medium that he would flip out this way. You don't really want to read another "Videogames drives man to murder suicide" news story, do you?

I can't feel completely sorry for the guy since he felt he had to take his wife with him. Regardless of the circumstances, he committed murder, which makes his last act on earth a shameful, pathetic one.

cloudeagle

IGN has an article up on this.

In a sad turn of events, a former IGN games editor allegedly shot and killed his wife before committing suicide on Sunday, January 11, according to reports. Concord police were alerted that Jason Montes, 33, was threatening to commit suicide on the evening of the eleventh, and when they arrived they found Montes dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. His wife, Serena Montes, 25, had also been critically wounded, according to police, who confirmed that she died later at a nearby hospital.

Police told the San Francisco Chronicle that after Montes shot his wife, he called friends and let them know he was planning to kill himself. Montes had reportedly been in the middle of am amicable split from his wife and had recently filed for bankruptcy protection.

Montes worked for IGN in 1997 back when the company's acronym still stood for the Imagine Games Network. There, he served as editor for Ultra Game Players Online. In 1998, Montes left IGN to pursue other career goals.

IGN veterans who knew Montes well are shocked by this sad news and we all extend our sincerest condolences to everyone affected by this horrible tragedy.

http://wii.ign.com/articles/947/947291p1.html

Duchess Prozac

Wow, that's shocking to hear. I have a feeling there might be some peope out there just waiting to jump at the chance to say " See, we told you games make people into violent killers."

And those people deserve to be fucking shot for taking advantage of such a tragedy.

urahonky

Wow this is terrible, terrible news.

leaf

Duchess Prozac wrote: »

Wow, that's shocking to hear. I have a feeling there might be some peope out there just waiting to jump at the chance to say " See, we told you games make people into violent killers."

And those people deserve to be fucking shot for taking advantage of such a tragedy.

haha, wow

Egos

I think people reserve the games make people kill people thing mainly for adolescents....

Saddler

Wow, that's terrible. And because he shot himself, he won't have to live with his crime.

Crazybear

Holy shit.

I can't even fathom someone falling so far that they choose to kill someone they love, or may have loved as they were no longer together, and then themselves.

He must have been in a dark, dark place to do what he did. It is really sad.

FireWeasel

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

MinionOfCthulhu

Duchess Prozac wrote: »

Wow, that's shocking to hear. I have a feeling there might be some peope out there just waiting to jump at the chance to say " See, we told you games make people into violent killers."

Yes, doubtless there are such people out there that would make such an outlandish claim abo-

Duchess Prozac wrote:

And those people deserve to be fucking shot for taking advantage of such a tragedy.

Oh come on.

X3x3non

It must be terrible to be so depressed that you see no other solution for your problems. I hope I never fall into that pit and that if I do there will be people around to pull me out of it.

Recoil42

Duchess Prozac wrote: »

Wow, that's shocking to hear. I have a feeling there might be some peope out there just waiting to jump at the chance to say " See, we told you games make people into violent killers."

And those people deserve to be fucking shot for taking advantage of such a tragedy.

Hey, can we not do this in this thread? It's been hashed to death. Thanks.


edit:

ohgod, no pun intended

Professor Snugglesworth

X3x3non wrote: »

It must be terrible to be so depressed that you see no other solution for your problems. I hope I never fall into that pit and that if I do there will be people around to pull me out of it.

I've been unemployed for almost a whole year. I consistently worry if I'll ever find a happy ending with the path I've chosen with my bachelor's degree.

But I don't stop looking for work. I'm pushing forward with my degree with no regrets, and I'm building my online contacts as I keep freelancing for video game websites, one day going as far as writing for the big leagues and maybe getting a free pass to E3 or TGS.

Point being, I haven't given up. And I never will.

Marikir

Reading the little bit that's come out so far, I'm leaning towards it not being related to his professional life, save that it might have provided more stress into his life.

I know the article says "amicable divorce" but...the way the situation played out doesn't make it seem that way, that maybe it was actually a acrimonious divorce, so much so that he hurt/killed the estranged wife and then turned it on himself.


Yeah, sounds sad all around.

ghost_master2000

leaf wrote: »

Duchess Prozac wrote: »

Wow, that's shocking to hear. I have a feeling there might be some peope out there just waiting to jump at the chance to say " See, we told you games make people into violent killers."

And those people deserve to be fucking shot for taking advantage of such a tragedy.

haha, wow

WIN!

it's not that gamers are crazy it's that crazy people are attracted to games.

wunderbar

Dee Colon guys, Dee fucking colon.



That's pretty awful.

MeepZero

Woah...

Inconditionate

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

Fiaryn

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

The line between him and us is much thinner than you seem to believe.

Tragedy is a word that's been used frequently in this thread, and rightly so.

The_Spaniard

Professor Snugglesworth wrote: »

Yeah, just saw it. It's pretty messed up.

But I'm curious why he did this. I'd hate to think the lifestyle of a gaming journalist would be so stressful.

You have NO idea..

Anyway this is the first I've heard of it.. I'll let the people around here in the GameSpy offices know about this sad and terrible news..

Marikir

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

I find myself thinking this as well. I feel sorrier for his victim than for him. He, in the end, was a murderer. She was a victim.

Cymoro

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

He most likely had a mental condition that nobody caught. It's not a matter of if he's one of us or not.

MarioG

I wanna write for IGN one day.

Viscountalpha

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

I see your point and agree but we don't know what was said and if she was an aggressor or just a victim. She may of been completely unreasonable and pushed him over, He may of just been under too much stress and said "fuck it".

One things for certain, I know he regrets his decisions.

Darmak

Viscountalpha wrote: »

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

I see your point and agree but we don't know what was said and if she was an aggressor or just a victim. She may of been completely unreasonable and pushed him over, He may of just been under too much stress and said "fuck it".

One things for certain, I know he regrets his decisions.

He can't regret them, he's dead.

The_Scarab

Viscountalpha wrote: »

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

I see your point and agree but we don't know what was said and if she was an aggressor or just a victim. She may of been completely unreasonable and pushed him over, He may of just been under too much stress and said "fuck it".

One things for certain, I know he regrets his decisions.

What the fuck? He shot her. She's the fucking victim here no matter how heinous her crimes. I reserve no sympathy for him, mental condition or not - and neither should you. Murder - suicide is one of if not the most despicable crime a person can commit and to say she is somehow the aggressor for 'pushing him over' is dumb.

Arde

What a fucking prick - the fucking coward, he doesn't want to die alone so he shot his wife.

yalborap

A tragic event.

Detharin

In before someone blames the firearm for its years of silent coercion, manipulation, and planning to push this guy over the edge so that it can finally get the justice it has craved.

Seriously though do not shoot your loved ones. Especially loved ones who have moved on. Murder-suicide is only ok if your method exterminates all life on the planet. Anything less is just a sad attempt to hold onto someone who is better off without you.

I vote we revoke his gamer card, and pin this tragedy on journalism.

Kagera

Cymoro wrote: »

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

He most likely had a mental condition that nobody caught. It's not a matter of if he's one of us or not.

Yeah I'm guessing he had some sort of dementia.

Bad joke Kagera, BAD!

But really the dude isn't some non-human because he turned into a killer. Guess what? Everyone has a breaking point where they will snap and do something horrible because of stress, depression, anger, what have you.

He's an asshole for killing his wife instead of just himself, but he's still one of us. Take care not to throw stones.

AbsoluteZero

WTF. I remember this guy being on the old IGN chat rooms WAYYYYY back in the day. I also remember him being somewhat of a twat.

Murder suicide... man... there's just gotta be a special place in hell for these people.

Quazar

He's not "one of us". I've never met him, hung out with him, or had a conversation with him. He happened to like a form of entertainment that I also like.

I'm sorry for those who knew him in the past, but I can't have sympathy for someone that would do something like that. I can be sympathetic to the problems he was having before this happened, but once he commits that act he becomes the worst kind of coward.

My thoughts go out to the families of the deceased.

Viscountalpha

Darmak wrote: »

Viscountalpha wrote: »

Inconditionate wrote: »

FireWeasel wrote: »

I want to be a flippant asshole about this but...damn, he was one of us.

How does this happen

Well, I don't want to be a flippant asshole, but I just feel the need to point out that he appears to have murdered someone else.

In my book, that does not make him 'one of us'.

They might be harsh words, but how harsh were his actions?

I understand the desire to not speak ill of the dead, but in a case like this, I'll go right ahead and call him a monster. What he did was so far beyond not cool that there isn't any other way to describe it.

I see your point and agree but we don't know what was said and if she was an aggressor or just a victim. She may of been completely unreasonable and pushed him over, He may of just been under too much stress and said "fuck it".

One things for certain, I know he regrets his decisions.

He can't regret them, he's dead.

You can disagree with me all you want, But I'm sure he is even less happy in his special place in hell. If fate is ironic, the woman he killed is the one torturing him in hell.

Both familys have my condolences though. No one should hear such horrible news.

Onslaught_Fei

_Insert desensitized post regarding murder suicide_

Cantido

Professor Snugglesworth wrote: »

X3x3non wrote: »

It must be terrible to be so depressed that you see no other solution for your problems. I hope I never fall into that pit and that if I do there will be people around to pull me out of it.

I've been unemployed for almost a whole year. I consistently worry if I'll ever find a happy ending with the path I've chosen with my bachelor's degree.

But I don't stop looking for work. I'm pushing forward with my degree with no regrets, and I'm building my online contacts as I keep freelancing for video game websites, one day going as far as writing for the big leagues and maybe getting a free pass to E3 or TGS.

Point being, I haven't given up. And I never will.

I have that problem. Except I said *fuck this* and started on another degree and the Air Force ROTC.

Also, I'm never making babies.